Amid evolving global dynamics, China has been resolutely committed to reform and opening-up. The launch of the Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP) in December 2025 exemplifies China's push for high-standard opening up, with expanded zero-tariff coverage and more market-oriented, business-friendly rules facilitating freer flows of goods.

　　During a trip to Hainan, Xi described the FTP as a landmark move reflecting China's commitment to unwaveringly expand high-standard opening-up and promote an open world economy.

　　Hainan should play a leading role in advancing high-standard opening up through strengthening coordinated development with the neighboring Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and deeply integrating into the Belt and Road cooperation, he added.

　　Thanks to its strategic location, the Hainan FTP is expected to serve as a new platform for international engagements in various sectors -- from tourism and modern services to high-tech industries and agriculture -- benefiting ASEAN countries in particular, said Christine Susanna Tjhin, director of strategic communication and research at Indonesia's Gentala Institute.

　　Inbound passengers pose for photos while waiting for border inspection procedures at Haikou Meilan International Airport in Haikou, South China's Hainan province, Dec 18, 2025.

　　FAIRER ECONOMIC ORDER

　　Amidst global economic storms, Global South countries bear the brunt of the economic squeeze, a fact crystallized in a recent World Bank finding: by the end of 2025, nearly all advanced economies had seen per capita incomes rise above their 2019 levels, while about one in four developing economies remained below pre-pandemic income levels.